Questions of Faith: Is religion a tool to woo or scare voters in the presidential race?

Blogs and mainstream and alternative press are churning out the accusations of questionable affiliations and activities most notably aimed at Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and Democrat presidential nominee Barack Obama.

For Palin, she’s facing questions about how far she applied her Christian beliefs while working as governor of Alaska and whether her religiously-driven activities were paid for with public funds.

Of course, in a related way, she has faced scrutiny for her faith-driven policies in support of abstinence, especially in light of her daughter’s unwed pregnancy and decision to marry the father.

For Obama, the questions are emerging about his religious affiliations with Muslim radicals, such as Khalid al-Mansour, described by Doug Edelman of Family Security Matters as an “anti-Semite Black Nationalist racist.”

There are some who just want the connection out of hope that linking him to certain Muslim groups, such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations, may hurt him in the polls.

Since no president has been anything other than Christian, they think it could scare off some voters if they link Obama — a former Muslim who converted to Christianity — to Islam. And Jews in the key state of Florida, who are largely already Obama supporters, may think twice if Obama is seen as a Palestinian sympathizer.

To be clear, I haven’t seen either one of the campaigns make accusations about religion…Still, it could be soon that such religious charges emerge in the final presidential debate or in campaign ads.

Should religion cut this way? Is it futile and only feeding into one-sided spinmeisters? Or is it fair game for the public to know detailed information about religious affiliations, practices and beliefs?